TRAVELS IN 
3 1 6 
philofophical difcuffion to the curious naturalifts. 
On the Georgia fide of the river, about fifteen miles 
below Silver Bluff, the high road croffes a ridge of 
high fweliing hills of uncommon elevation, and 
perhaps feventy feet higher than the furface of the 
river. Thefe hills, from three feet below the com- 
mon vegetative furface, to the depth of twenty or 
thirty feet, are compofed entirely of foffil oyfter 
Ihells, internally of the colour and confiftency of 
clear white marble : the fhells are of incredible 
magnitude, generally fifteen or twenty inches in 
length, from fix to eight wide, and two to four in 
thicknefs, and their hollows fufficient to receive an 
ordinary man’s foot : they appear all to have been 
opened before the period of petrifaction, a tranfmu- 
tation they feem evidently to have fuffered ; they 
are undoubtedly very ancient or perhaps antidelu- 
vian. The adjacent inhabitants burn them to lime 
for building, for which purpofe they ferve very 
well ; and would undoubtedly afford an excellent 
manure when their lands require it, thefe hills be- 
ing now remarkably fertile. The heaps of fhells lie 
upon a ftratum of a yellowifh fandy mould, of fe- 
veral feet in depth, upon a foundation of foft white 
rocks, that has the outward appearance of free-flone, 
but on ftrict examination is really a teftaceous con- 
crete or compofition of fand and pulverifed fea 
Ihells : in fhort, this teflaceous rock approaches 
near in quality and appearance to the Bahama or 
Bermudian white rock, 
Thefe hills are fhaded with glorious Magnolia 
grandiflora, Morus rubra, Tilia, Quercus, Ulmus, 
Juglans, &c, with aromatic groves of fragrant 
Callicanthus Floridus, Rhododendron ferrugineum, 
Laurus Indie a, &c., fEfculus pavia, Cornus Flo- 
